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wings
A salute to a good soldier
I was five years old and living in Houston, Texas, when Rosa Parks decided on Dec. 1, 1955, that she would not give up her fifth-row seat to a white man on a public bus in Montgomery, Ala. She went on to become a tremendous symbol in the fight for civil rights for African Americans.
Mrs. Parks had no clue that day that she would set off a chain of events leading to full rights for African Americans in this nation of ours. Rosa Parks died Oct. 24, 2005, at the age of 92. She will be forever remembered for helping to break down the walls of discrimination that were blemishes on the nation's record and an embarrassment to our constitution. I salute her today for her sacrifice that helped African Americans specifically - and all Americans in general - live out the true meaning of this statement: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal."
It is amazing that we often can't see that from tiny droplets, large drops grow. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was about the dignity of black people in that area, and yet it led to a much larger movement that not only reshaped Montgomery but also helped to reshape the South and our entire nation. The bus boycott inspired the fight for justice and equality in such a way that Roberta Wright wrote in her 1991 book, The Birth of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, "It helped to launch a 10- year national struggle for freedom and justice, the Civil Rights Movement, that stimulated others to do the same at home and abroad."
Rosa Parks proved that one person can make a difference. If there ever was a time we need to hear this, it is now. It's to our detriment that we get easily discouraged because we feel we can't make a difference. Rosa Parks is but one shining example in our history, which is replete with stories of individuals who set off waves of change in their families, communities, churches, and yes, throughout the world. Who knows? Perhaps God is calling you to be the soldier who helps your church reverse a decline, or to serve the poor and oppressed in your neighborhood, or to become a preacher of the gospel. Maybe God is calling you to become the soldier who will build homes for the homeless, feed the hungry, serve as a nurse to the homebound, or raise money for the education of poor children with so much promise.
Thank you, Rosa, for not giving up that seat on Dec. 1, 1955. You taught me to believe in myself and to let God fight for me.
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Bishop James Swanson
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